How William Rast Execs Convinced Justin Timberlake to Star in the Campaign

Justin Timberlake in the new William Rast campaign with Erin Wasson.
Photo:
Courtesy of William Rast

Justin Timberlake "never really wanted" to be the face of his clothing line, William Rast, according to WWD. But the label's higher-ups managed to talk him into starring in the latest campaign for its first full collection:

"We came up with this idea for him to play a role as this guy named William Rast," [creative director] Johan Lindeberg said. "So it isn't meant to be Justin, it's Justin playing a role, as an actor. When we explained the idea, he instantly loved it and got really into building the profile of this character."

In fact, Justin plays this William Rast character in a series of short Internet movies called "My Name Is William Rast" debuting at williamrastmovie.com later this month. In them William Rast is a rebel who runs from the police with Birdie, his lady friend, played by model Erin Wasson. The couple wears head-to-toe William Rast and apparently have committed some mysterious crime. As they flee the police they stop from time to time for "steamy make-out sessions," eventually dashing into the forest together as gunshots go off in the background.

Hm. It sounds like the injury Wasson suffered shooting this campaign just might have been worth it.